Timothée Chalamet is @Variety’s current frontrunner for Best Actor at the Oscars next year.

This would make him the youngest winner in the category. pic.twitter.com/Ys9vqSmNzv

— Film Updates (@FilmUpdates) November 21, 2024

Timothée Chalamet delivering two of the best performances of his career in the same year while potentially being the youngest to ever win Best Actor. Incredible. pic.twitter.com/0LHz04HYaM

— Dan Marcus (@Danimalish) November 21, 2024

Gonna put this out there now: I think we need to take Monica Barbaro seriously for a nomination in Supporting Actress.

Considering how slim the competition is, I wouldn’t count her out. #ACompleteUnknown pic.twitter.com/Hp87stqEce

— Nick Zednik (@NickZednik) November 21, 2024

Timothée Chalamet's performance in 'A Complete Unknown' is nothing short of transformative. He becomes Dylan, disappearing completely into the man behind the music. Monica Barbaro, Elle Fanning, and Edward Norton also shine, each bringing depth and humanity to their roles. The… pic.twitter.com/2Ie7wNPFZF

— Jonathan P. Moustakas (@thecinemagroup) November 21, 2024

#acompleteunknown is an introduction to a new chapter in Timothee Chalamet’s career. Modest, mature and transformative. The film is completely absorbing and one of the best of the year, and Chalamet is entrancing.

— Matthew Koss (@matthew_koss) November 22, 2024

I continue to be so impressed by Timothée Chalamet. I got wonderfully lost in his portrayal of Bob Dylan in #ACompleteUnknown. Not only does Timothée sound like Bob, but his posture, the haze in his eyes and even his fingernails for guitar playing are spot on. A joy to behold. 👏 pic.twitter.com/n5z805fH4i

— Jeff Conway (@jeffconway) November 22, 2024

Loved #ACompleteUnknown. Dylan fans will adore it; Dylan sceptics might be converted. The songs are brilliantly staged, the drama builds to a tremendous climax, it feels 100% authentic and Chalamet is phenomenal. Give him all the awards now. pic.twitter.com/T5eD5C8r01

— boydhilton (@boydhilton) November 25, 2024

Really loved A Complete Unknown. Chalamet could easily win Best Actor this awards season. Also, there were special credits pointing out that Chalamet, Ed Norton (as Pete Seeger), Monica Barbaro (Joan Baez) + Boyd Holbrook (Johnny Cash) all did their own singing. #ACompleteUnknown pic.twitter.com/J8sXl1Zmro

— Matthew Turner (@FilmFan1971) November 25, 2024

A COMPLETE UNKNOWN shows pure reverence for Bob Dylan’s music and the New York City folk scene of the 1960s, immersing us in a condensed yet pivotal period that highlights Dylan’s early career and his transition from acoustic to electric. Timothée Chalamet fully embodies Dylan’s… pic.twitter.com/cQDkaZi9uN

— Matt Neglia (@NextBestPicture) November 24, 2024

Completely blown away by #ACompleteUnknown. @mang0ld has crafted a dynamic, intimate biopic that marvels at the genius & impact of Bob Dylan while keeping him a total mystery. Which feels perfectly Dylan.

Electric music scenes. Incredible performances. This one is special. pic.twitter.com/TLXQwKRmDR

— Germain Lussier (@GermainLussier) November 26, 2024

Timonthée Chalamet truly inhabits Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown, James Mangold’s deliberately obtuse yet fully engrossing biopic. He’s phenomenal, though I was nearly as taken by Monica Barbaro, Elle Fanning, and Edward Norton. Really enjoyed this one.#ACompleteUnknown pic.twitter.com/DgGT3wpjif

— Joey Magidson (@JoeyMagidson) November 26, 2024

James Mangold’s A COMPLETE UNKNOWN is excellent. Piercing, ambitious, mainstream, & grand. As Dylan, Timothée Chalamet is an unknowable heartbreaker. And he nails his poetic electricity—becomes him rather than impersonates him. Very high on this. Wow… Review soon (by embargo).🎵

— Tomris Laffly (@TomiLaffly) November 26, 2024

TCTTS said:

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Gonna put this out there now: I think we need to take Monica Barbaro seriously for a nomination in Supporting Actress.

Considering how slim the competition is, I wouldn’t count her out. #ACompleteUnknown pic.twitter.com/Hp87stqEce

— Nick Zednik (@NickZednik) November 21, 2024

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Top Gun Maverick? I thought she had something in that, not surprising to see her doing a big movie as a follow up

That's kind of a compliment from Dylan. Called Chalamet a brilliant actor. But confirms he hasn't seen the movie or how good or bad Chalamet is at being Dylan.
But if Dylan called me a brilliant anything, I'd take that as a huge compliment too.
Does Dylan get a cut of those book sales?

Who else read Bob's post and imagined what it would sound like if he sang it?

Quote:

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Does Dylan get a cut of those book sales?

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I wondered the same thing.

Recommended watching - classic documentary from a 1965 tour in England. Available on Amazon.

I intend to see this movie, but I did run across a pretty negative review (I clicked on a link in the NYT):

Quote:

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... Chalamet spent so much time rehearsing songs that he phoned in the rest of his performance, most of which is played stiff and brooding. Chalamet sulks and talks out of the side of his mouth, picking from a grab bag of accents that vary with each sceneall of which are far more reedy and cartoonish than Dylan actually sounded in his younger days. At times, it ventured into the pinched wheezing that marks so many late-era Dylan parodies.

While Mangold and Chalamet have discussed their desire to interpret, not imitate, Dylan, one wonders why the mimicry wasn't scaled back. When he's not singing, Chalamet offers only a surly, too-cool facade. He squashes Dylan's charm, sense of humor, and humanity under a freight of forced mannerisms.

For every scrap of unique texture, there's a reminder that A Complete Unknown is content to indulge in the most shopworn tropes of musical biopics. When Dylan is laying down "Subterranean Homesick Blues" in the studio with a bevy of electric instruments, Columbia producer John Hammond peers in from the control booth and crisply declares, "Well, this is gonna piss some people off." Later, Dylan zips off on his hog as Seeger waves him goodbye. "Be careful on that thing!" Seeger shouts, getting a nervous chuckle out of an audience well aware of Dylan's 1966 motorcycle accident.

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Great to hear.

Taking the whole family next week and we can't wait.

Tickets purchased for Thursday night with the family.

Cannot wait.

Bumping for anyone who happens to see it before then, seeing as it is now officially out as of tonight.

Watched it last night with my wife. We both enjoyed it, but I left feeling a lot like this review.

There were still times where Chalamet faded away and it felt like watching Dylan, but it almost felt like watching characters of Dylan that have popped up over the years.

I am a sucker for music based story lines, and really enjoyed the music, but something about the movie as a whole felt very surface level. Will watch again when it comes to streaming of course and will be happy to do so despite any of that. Enjoyable movie.

movie good

wow, i dont know much about bob dylan but my mom really wants to see this.

My parents, who saw Dylan in concert on their honeymoon, both loved it.

My sisters - one who's seen Dylan twice in concert, the other who could not care less about him - both loved it as well.

As for me… I thought it was incredible.

That said, I totally get the "surface level" critiques. This is not your typical biopic, where you learn from childhood what makes the protagonist tick, what, exactly, he or she is chasing, etc. There's no big arc, no Dark Night of the Soul, etc.

To that end, as a title, A Complete Unknown carries two meanings…

1) The famous lyric that of course doubles as the film's title, one that speaks to Dylan showing up out of nowhere, only to go supernova.

2) And then what the film reveals it's really about; how, after Dylan achieves his stardom, he remains a complete unknown to everyone around him, in that the film is primarily concerned with the effect Dylan's genius leaves on others - the wake of broken hearts and disappointments and envy.

Dylan says it himself at one point…

"People keep asking me where the songs come from. But they're not asking where the songs come from. They're asking why they didn't come to them."

… a line that speaks directly to the theme.

Because the film isn't really about Dylan as much as it is about the people around him - Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, etc - and about how understanding Dylan is to understand those who loved him and were at times inspired, disappointed, frustrated, hurt, or loved by him.

So, again, I get the critique, but also… it seems that was the point.

Bob Dylan is an enigma.

And in terms of emotion, the film is more concerned with how the orbiting characters react to the enigma than the enigma himself.

Beyond the thematic elements, though, the music throughout is just pure magic. And takes up at least half of the film's runtime, if not more, as it's very much a concert film. But it's all just so damn impressive, especially knowing every single actor is singing for real, on set, in camera.

Not to mention the amazing production design… the cinematography… the all-around authenticity... and every last performance, especially from Monica Barbaro and of course Timothee Chalamet, who I'm now convinced will take home the Oscar.

Overall, this is just one of those movies I can't wait to own, if only to have it on at times, while I'm working, so I can wade in its vibe and be inspired to create.

Love your review. Looking forward to watching this movie. I didn't become a fan of Dylan until the last 20 years (I'm 61) but have grown to appreciate his impact on the music, literary, and the American culture.

Another thought on the "surface level" critiques that I disagree with, is not every movie or biopic needs to be some deep dive of the person. That is one route you can take, and another is to depict an arc of their life and everyone involved/impacted in it during that time.
Even then, we still learn a lot about him and the people mentioned above. Maybe if you were already intimately familiar with his life it feels like a waste of time, but I didn't really know any of it going in.

Agreed, and same.

I just saw this movie today with two friends in their 40s (I am 75). The audience was small and closer to my demographic than to that of my friends.

I agree with much of what you said in your review, especially this insightful remark:

Quote:

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A Complete Unknown carries two meanings…

1) The famous lyric that of course doubles as the film's title, one that speaks to Dylan showing up out of nowhere, only to go supernova.

2) And then what the film reveals it's really about; how, after Dylan achieves his stardom, he remains a complete unknown to everyone around him, in that the film is primarily concerned with the effect Dylan's genius leaves on others - the wake of broken hearts and disappointments and envy.

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Well said. Dylan as a person and artist is like Moby Dick, whose essential characteristic is that he is unknowable. To some degree, Dylan becomes a blank wall onto which those around him project what they want to see.

The most important projection dealt with in the movie is how the Guthrie/Seeger/Baez Left want Dylan to help them co-opt the very popular and mostly apolitical folk music movement of the late 50s and early 60s and turn it into a political movement that serves their Progressive ends. (One of those ends, the push for Civil Rights, is of course a noble one.)

One cavil I have with the movie is that the filmwriters distort the fact that Guthrie and Seeger were American Communists who had evinced blind loyalty to Stalin even when other Leftists abandoned the party line when Stalin joined Hitler in dividing up Poland.

I will not dwell on this issue but the film begins by mocking the notion that Guthrie and Seeger were actual Communists, which they certainly were.

Knowing Guthrie's and Seeger's political sympathies adds a major dimension to the sense of betrayal they felt when Dylan decided to go his own way rather than be confined by the ideology (and musicology) of the Left.

(An excellent discussion of how Guthrie and Seeger were drawn into and became leaders in the push to create a Communist folk art movement is here.)


Other random observations:

Norton's portrayal of Seeger is amazingly close to Seeger, whose work I am very familiar with.

The woman who plays Joan Baez does not sound like her at all. Admittedly, Joan Baez has a very distinctive voice, but I have read a number of reviews that celebrate the actress for her singing. I don't see it.

Dylan comes off as the jerk that the Joan Baez character accuses him of being. Seeger and Baez wanted to use him to their own ends (though I do believe Baez loved him), but it is clear that Dylan consciously looked around him to absorb the vibes that allowed him to write songs that would open doors for him, which he happily and eagerly rushed right through--up to a point.

Chalomet does a very good job of singing Dylan. I too saw the film as a concert film, and on that level I enjoyed it very much.

That said, if someone were just interested in Dylan, the documentary I mentioned earlier in the thread--No Direction Home (2005) by Sorcese--is magnificent.

my god pic.twitter.com/PgJ0GaIKnZ

— Britt Eisnor (@britt_eisnor) December 29, 2024

I was just listening to that. It's pretty good.

Wow. What a great movie.